{"id":427,"date":"2026-07-21T21:56:30","date_gmt":"2026-07-21T21:56:30","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/tiburonballena.com\/?page_id=427"},"modified":"2026-07-25T01:34:27","modified_gmt":"2026-07-25T01:34:27","slug":"about","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/tiburonballena.com\/?page_id=427","title":{"rendered":"About Us"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Photo of the team monitoring in 2014. <\/span>Taken by Austin Montero<\/span> <\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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A Family Rooted in Whale Shark Conservation<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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Tibur\u00f3n Ballena Bah\u00eda de los \u00c1ngeles is a family-run conservation effort born in Bah\u00eda de los \u00c1ngeles.<\/span><\/p>\n

Our story began in 1992, when my father (Abraham) started documenting and researching the whale sharks that visit these waters each summer. I (Vanessa) was born the year before, so I grew up surrounded by conversations about whale sharks, and days spent searching the bay. By the age of five, I swam with my first whale shark, a moment that shaped the course of my life.<\/span><\/p>\n

For many years, whale shark monitoring has been a true community effort involving local residents, fishermen, students, and volunteers who share a commitment to understanding and protecting these animals. Today, I lead much of that work with the continued support of my father, our partners, interns and volunteers.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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Meet our team<\/span><\/h2>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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Abraham V\u00e1zquez<\/span><\/h6>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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Founder <\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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Taken by Al Krum<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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Vanessa V\u00e1zquez<\/span><\/h6>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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Director <\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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Taken by Vanessa V\u00e1zquez<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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Jos\u00e9 Arce <\/span><\/h6>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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Captain<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/section>\n

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2026 Interns and Volunteers<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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Taken by Vanessa V\u00e1zquez<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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Moose Brown<\/span><\/h6>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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Intern<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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Christian Velarde<\/span><\/h6>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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Volunteer<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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Taken by Lucy Hamman<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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Alexander Galv\u00e1n<\/span><\/h6>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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Volunteer<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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Our Partners<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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Whale Shark Mexico<\/span><\/h6>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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Comisi\u00f3n Nacional De Areas Naturales Protegidas (CONANP)<\/span><\/h6>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/section><\/div>\n

<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Photo of the team monitoring in 2014. Taken by Austin Montero A Family Rooted in Whale Shark Conservation Tibur\u00f3n Ballena Bah\u00eda de los \u00c1ngeles is a family-run conservation effort born in Bah\u00eda de los \u00c1ngeles. Our story began in 1992, when my father (Abraham) started documenting and researching the whale sharks that visit these waters […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"brizy-blank-template.php","meta":{"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-427","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"brizy_media":[{"id":464,"url":"https:\/\/tiburonballena.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/whale-shark-abraham-from-boat-scaled.jpg","name":"whale-shark-abraham-from-boat.jpg","meta":{"brizy_attachment_uid":"wp-ac10474fd74b351cd85e9d75751d0fe1.jpg","brizy_post_uid":["401ec1eecb4c7ed4de5520ccfe7b62b5"]}},{"id":468,"url":"https:\/\/tiburonballena.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/whale-shark-underwater-researcher.jpg","name":"whale-shark-underwater-researcher.jpg","meta":{"brizy_attachment_uid":"wp-a896c5322a1e4ad8d82a72ca4c7321e4.jpg","brizy_post_uid":["401ec1eecb4c7ed4de5520ccfe7b62b5"]}},{"id":472,"url":"https:\/\/tiburonballena.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/WhatsApp-Image-2026-07-13-at-7.58.40-PM.jpeg","name":"WhatsApp-Image-2026-07-13-at-7.58.40-PM.jpeg","meta":{"brizy_attachment_uid":"wp-7d7c8d1b0aed247e385e79efc9b5466e.jpeg","brizy_post_uid":["cebfbd1b3450984fc64b3cd2cbb246d9","401ec1eecb4c7ed4de5520ccfe7b62b5"]}},{"id":510,"url":"https:\/\/tiburonballena.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/IMG_5596-scaled.jpg","name":"IMG_5596.jpg","meta":{"brizy_attachment_uid":"wp-29e19c13069b98562174d82af53b8fd3.jpg","brizy_post_uid":["401ec1eecb4c7ed4de5520ccfe7b62b5"]}},{"id":513,"url":"https:\/\/tiburonballena.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/IMG_5520-scaled.jpg","name":"IMG_5520.jpg","meta":{"brizy_attachment_uid":"wp-02ace6883faef55da6ca6d63003c7d7e.jpg","brizy_post_uid":["401ec1eecb4c7ed4de5520ccfe7b62b5"]}},{"id":514,"url":"https:\/\/tiburonballena.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/IMG_5528-scaled.jpg","name":"IMG_5528.jpg","meta":{"brizy_attachment_uid":"wp-3a9fb2090ed10e62797ba7779ac431a5.jpg","brizy_post_uid":["401ec1eecb4c7ed4de5520ccfe7b62b5"]}},{"id":519,"url":"https:\/\/tiburonballena.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/IMG_5519-scaled.jpg","name":"IMG_5519.jpg","meta":{"brizy_attachment_uid":"wp-fc33c726150a5f917af7c75760edb9c8.jpg","brizy_post_uid":["401ec1eecb4c7ed4de5520ccfe7b62b5"]}},{"id":524,"url":"https:\/\/tiburonballena.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/IMG_5652-2-scaled.jpg","name":"IMG_5652-2.jpg","meta":{"brizy_attachment_uid":"wp-255ed3a6528860b8b1eb8e26f9336c75.jpg","brizy_post_uid":["401ec1eecb4c7ed4de5520ccfe7b62b5"]}},{"id":531,"url":"https:\/\/tiburonballena.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/bf19ce2a-3151-4580-ad5d-3670f076e9e4.jpg","name":"bf19ce2a-3151-4580-ad5d-3670f076e9e4.jpg","meta":{"brizy_attachment_uid":"wp-c36aa40d7c971928508937fc47c12c8b.jpg","brizy_post_uid":["401ec1eecb4c7ed4de5520ccfe7b62b5"]}},{"id":557,"url":"https:\/\/tiburonballena.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/DSC_5715-scaled.jpg","name":"DSC_5715.jpg","meta":{"brizy_attachment_uid":"wp-35dab69d2c3b4fca8b9dc24ba3835449.jpg","brizy_post_uid":["401ec1eecb4c7ed4de5520ccfe7b62b5"]}},{"id":564,"url":"https:\/\/tiburonballena.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/Whake-Shark-Mexico.jpg","name":"Whake-Shark-Mexico.jpg","meta":{"brizy_attachment_uid":"wp-dd5d97fa0763e87e9b2436e6d1a4325f.jpg","brizy_post_uid":["401ec1eecb4c7ed4de5520ccfe7b62b5"]}},{"id":565,"url":"https:\/\/tiburonballena.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/1748993533285.jpg","name":"1748993533285.jpg","meta":{"brizy_attachment_uid":"wp-baf309402bd4d32b8b74b6357f06cbef.jpg","brizy_post_uid":["401ec1eecb4c7ed4de5520ccfe7b62b5"]}}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/tiburonballena.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/427","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/tiburonballena.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/tiburonballena.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tiburonballena.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tiburonballena.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=427"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/tiburonballena.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/427\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":566,"href":"https:\/\/tiburonballena.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/427\/revisions\/566"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/tiburonballena.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=427"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}